NAIROBI, Kenya Jun 19 – The Nairobi County Government says it has increased daily waste collection from about 1,000 tonnes to more than 4,000 tonnes since April, clearing dozens of illegal dumpsites and waste accumulation points as part of an intensified effort to address the capital’s long-running garbage problem.
County officials say the clean-up campaign, undertaken in partnership with private waste management firms including Zoomlion, has seen more than 100 garbage collection trucks deployed across the city on a day-and-night schedule.
Governor Johnson Sakaja said the campaign had resulted in the clearance of more than 40 major waste collection points and illegal dumping sites across Nairobi’s 17 sub-counties.
“Nairobi is Kenya’s capital and economic hub, with a daytime population approaching seven million people. This requires a robust and coordinated waste management system,” Sakaja said.
The county says the largest clean-up operations have been carried out in Kasarani, Embakasi East and Embakasi South, where hundreds of truckloads of accumulated waste were removed from long-standing dumping sites.
According to the county government, more than 1,000 truckloads of waste were removed from Kware Bridge in Embakasi South, while approximately 1,170 truckloads were cleared from waste hotspots in Kianda and Mihango in Embakasi East. In Kasarani, officials reported the removal of 679 truckloads from four major collection points, including Kamulu 26 and St Francis.
Other areas targeted by the exercise include Mathare, Dagoretti, Kibra, Kamukunji and Ruaraka, where county officials say waste accumulation points that had existed for months or years have been cleared and placed under routine maintenance schedules.
County Executive Committee Member for Green Nairobi Maureen Njeri said the expanded operation has significantly increased the city’s collection capacity.
“During peak operations, we can collect up to 6,000 tonnes of waste daily compared to the 1,000 tonnes previously collected. This coordinated waste collection programme will continue as we work towards a cleaner and healthier city,” she said.
The latest campaign comes as Nairobi continues to grapple with persistent waste management challenges that have plagued successive administrations. Illegal dumping, inadequate collection services and growing volumes of solid waste have contributed to the emergence of informal dumpsites in residential estates, markets and informal settlements across the city.
The county says it has complemented the clean-up effort by employing 4,000 Green Army workers on permanent and pensionable terms and plans to establish a material recovery and processing facility alongside four waste transfer stations as part of a broader solid waste management strategy.
Officials argue that the proposed facilities will improve waste collection, transportation and disposal while supporting recycling and resource recovery initiatives.
However, environmental experts have previously noted that periodic clean-up campaigns alone are unlikely to resolve Nairobi’s waste crisis without sustained investment in collection systems, waste segregation, recycling infrastructure and enforcement against illegal dumping.
Residents in several areas where waste has been removed have welcomed the clean-up operations, although concerns remain about whether the sites will remain clear in the long term.
The county government says maintenance operations will continue across all 17 sub-counties to prevent the re-emergence of illegal dumpsites.
